Four more Northwest Catholic High School seniors today announced their commitments to play sports at Division 1 or Ivy League colleges next year: Jenniqua Bailey (basketball at Bryant University), Tom Bourdon (baseball at Boston College), Alexandra Iovine (soccer at Manhattan College), and Justin Strid (football at Cornell). Click here for photo from the signing ceremony at NWC, and here to see a TV interview with Justin Strid, which was part of WFSB's statewide signing day coverage.

* Bailey, daughter of Sandra Feurtado of Bloomfield and Walford Bailey of Meriden, was All-Conference as a freshman, sophomore, and junior, and was also team MVP as a sophomore. She was named to the 2009 Northwest Conference Tournament team and the 2009 Avon Christmas Tournament team. She is a co-captain of the NWC team, which is undefeated and ranked first in CT.

“Jenniqua has stunned spectators game after game,” said assistant coach Maureen Christ. ”She is genuinely kind, an inspiring teammate, and a consistently hard worker. She has been a key component of the NWC girls’ basketball program her entire career.”

* Thomas Bourdon, son of Peter and Mary Bourdon of Simsbury, was All-Conference as a freshman, sophomore, and junior, and All-State as a junior -- the first NWC baseball player ever to make the team as a junior. An outstanding centerfielder, pitcher, and hitter, he was also tapped for the Junior Select All-Star game. He is a co-captain of both the baseball and basketball teams.

“Tom Bourdon is the type of player who does not come around very often,” said head coach Cory Carlson. “It is an absolute pleasure to coach a player of his caliber, and I feel very fortunate to have coached him over the past four seasons.”

* Alexandra Iovine, daughter of Mark and Lisa Iovine of Canton, began playing for NWC as a junior, after she moved to CT from NJ. She was named All-Conference as a junior and senior, and All-State and All-Courant as a senior. A center midfielder, she now holds the school record for assists in both a single season (28) and career (46). She was the scoring leader (50 points) this year, as the NWC team captured the first Girls' Soccer State Championship in school history.

"Alex is without a doubt one of the best to ever play soccer for Northwest Catholic,” said head coach Todd Sadler. “From day 1, she ran the show in the midfield. She was always a great passer, but when she started to look to finish on her own this year it’s no coincidence that we went on the magical run to the championship."

* Justin Strid, son of Scott and Ann Strid of Avon, is a 6'1", 220-lb inside linebacker who was NWC's leading tackler for the past two years (210 tackles). A co-captain, he was named All-Conference and All-State as a junior and senior, and this year helped to take the team farther than any NWC football team has ever gone (#2 in the State).

“Justin is fast, smart and physical at linebacker,” said head coach Mike Tyler ’73. “He is an excellent leader both on and off the field, as evidenced by his hard work in the weight room, conditioning, and his academic success. He was recruited by most of the Ivy League schools as well as Holy Cross, U. of New Hampshire, U. of Massachusetts, and other D1AA schools.”

In Nov. 2009, NWC seniors Allison Mullings and Uju Nwankwo signed their letters of intent to play basketball at Siena College and the NJ Institute of Technology, respectively.